Thermostat controlled valve



Feb. 3, 1942. I s pm ETAL 2,271,833

IHERMOSTAT' CONTROLLED VALVE I Filed May 29 19310 Carl flay}?6921530770v 4 WITNESS ATTORNEYS Patented F eb.'3, 1.942

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE THERMOSTAT CONTROLLED VALVE Carl N. Shipmanand Roy P. Grissom, Oklahoma City, Okla.; said Shipman assignor ofsixteen and two-thirds per cent to R. G. Lett and sixteen and two-thirdsper cent to Dan C. Paxton, both of Oklahoma City, Okla.

Application May 29, 1940, Serial No.s37,924

' 1 Claim. (01'. 277-21) 'This invention relates to thermostatcontrolled valves and has for an object to provide a device of thischaracter particularly adapted for automatic fire sprinkler control.

Ordinarily, when a fire raises the temperature of a building protectedby a sprinkler system, the

sprinkler head operates continuously to flood the building with wateruntil the arrival of the fire department. With this in mind it is anobject of the present invention to provide a simplified form ofthermostat controlled valve which may be used as an individual controlvalve for each separate sprinkler head and will automatically cut offthe water supply from the operating. sprinkler head when the temperaturehas decreased below the danger point and thus prevent needless floodingof the building with water.

A further object is to provide adevice of this character which will bepositive in operation and which will always bein operative positionunder severe conditions of service.

A iurther, object is to provide apparatus or this character which willbe formed of a few strong,

simple and durable parts, which will be inexpensive to manufacture, andwhich will not easily get out of order.

With the above and other objects in view the invention consists ofcertain noveldetails of construction and combinations of partshereinafter fullydescribed and claimed, it being understood 3 thatvarious modifications may be resorted to within the scope of theappended claim without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any ofthe advantages of the invention.

' In the accompanying drawing forming a part 1 of this specification:

The figure is a longitudinal sectional view of a thermostat controlledvalve constructed in accordance with the invention and showing an alarmdevice diagrammatically.

Referring now to the drawing in which like characters of referencedesignate similar parts in the various views, It] designates a mainvalve casing having alined sprinkler head and inlet pipes II and I2connected thereto. A cylinder 13 is mounted upon the open top of themain valve pression spring 20 is sleeved on the stem l5 and bearsagainst the valve l8 and against the bottom head ll oi the cylinder tohold the valve seated. 4/ I A cylinder valve housing 2| is disposedadjacent to one side of the cylinder l3 and is connected to the cylinder13 below the piston l4 by a pipe 22. A valve seat 23 is formed in thehousing 2| at the bottom of the pipe 22 and a needle valve 24 is mountedto seat upwardly in the valve seat 23. The needle valve is equipped witha stem 25 which projects through the bottom closure cap 26 of thecylinderical valve housing and a helical compression spring 21 issleeved on the valve stem and tends to constantly hold the needle valveclosed.

A by-pass pipe 28 is connected to the valve housing Ill on the inletside thereof and is connected to the cylinderical valve housing 2! belowthe valve seat 23 to permit fluid to pass into the cylinder [3 below thepiston l4 through the pipe 22 when the needle valve 24 is opened.

A push rod 29 is engaged through the top closure cap '30 of thecylindrical housing 2! and loosely engages a guide shoulder 32 whichprojects inwardly from the top of the housing. The lower end of the pushrod abuts the top of the needle valve 24 which latter, when seated,

projects slightly'above the valve seat 23. The, push rod is providedaxially with a vent opening 33 which opens through the top of the pushrod through an enlarged recess 34 and opens through the side of the pushrod through a laterally directed branch opening 35.

A thermostat 36 of the bellows type is mounted on a bracket arm 31 whichis secured to the top head 38 of the cylinder l3 by screws 39, or otherconnectors, laterally of avent opening 40in the cylinder head 38. at thebottom with a stem M which is equipped with a rubber disk valve 42. Thevalve is secured to the lower end of the stem by a screw. 43, or otherconnector, and is adapted toseal the upper end of the vent opening 33when thethermostat expands.

vA tubular collar 44 i snugly sleeved on the stem 4| and is fixedlyconnected at the upper end to the stem by a pin 45. v

A block of insulation 46 is fixed to one side of the tubular collar 44in any preferred manner and a switch contact 41 is secured to the blockby a screw 48.. A grounded switch contact 49 is secured to the tubularvalve housing 2| to cooperate. ith the switch contact a! in controllinga signal circuit 50 to a buzzer 5| which is connected to a battery 52. Il

'The thermostat is provided In operation, when temperature rises to 9.danger point as in the case of fire, the thermostat 36 will expand andmove the stem 4| downwardly, first until the valve 42 seals the vent 33and subsequently moves the push rod 29 downward to open the needle valve24. When the I needle valve 24 is open fluid pressure through the Y 21to close the needle valve 24 thereby returning the push rod to normalposition. Liquid in the cylinder l3 below the piston i4ithen escapesthrough the pipe 22 and air vent 33 past the open valve 42 and'downwardinside the tubular collar 44 where it wastes over the top of the tubularvalve housing 2|. The spring 20 then moves the piston I4 to neutralposition and closes the disk valve l8, the vent opening 40 preventing Iany vacuum in the topof the cylinder 13.

From the above description it is thought that theconstruction andoperation of the invention will be fully understood without furtherexplana- 0.

tion.

What is claimed is:

A pilot valve comprising a cylindrical housing, a pipe entering thehousing adapted for connection with a main valve, a valve seat in thehousing below the pipe, a spring pressed needle valve in the seatprojecting above the seat and closing upwardly, a by-pass pipe enteringthe housing adapted for connection with the intake side of a main valvepermitting fluid to pass into the housing and out through the firstnamed pipe when the needle valve is open, a push rod slidably mounted inthe housing and abutting the top of the needle valve, there being anaxial vent in the push rod opening through the top of the push rod andthrough the side of the push rod, a stem disposed above the top of thehousing adapted to operate the push rod, a valve on the stem adapted toclose the vent opening in the top of the push rod when the push rod ismoved by the stem to open the needle.valve, retrograde r CARL N.SHIPMAN. 1,203! P. GRISSOM.

